Zoella: Representation

http://georgialaymedia.blogspot.com/2019/02/zoella-representation_6.html

Theorists:

Gauntlett (Identity Theory) - Zoella sharing her personal stories online imposes meaning on things that are relevant to her audience, because she is a perfect version of her target audience. The audience uses the narrative they see on her blog to bring order to their own lives and frame their experiences. They also pick elements from her narrative to include in their own identity.

Hall (Representation Theory) - Zoella is her own gatekeeper so chooses how she is represented, and stereotypes herself as a typical young female with her love of makeup and beauty and her informal method of address.

Butler (Gender Performativity Theory) - She reinforces gender norms on her blog such as interest in makeup, beauty and fashion. She could be seen to challenge gender performativity in her videos where she does makeup on her boyfriend.

Gilroy (Postcolonial Theory) - Zoella's content features mostly if not all, white people. This means she reflects the dominant norms and values of the society where she is from. This means she lacks diverse representation, but because she is a lifestyle vlogger, her content features her friends so she cannot employ people of different ethnicities. This could be seen to normalise this lack of representation because impressionable fans are likely to represent what they see, this links to Gerbner's cultivation theory.